The Best Laid Plans
by SoulSeeker
Summary: Having failed her proficiency test in Forensics, Ema Skye seeks solace for her remaining days in Germany. EmaEdgeworth; mild spoilers for Justice for All, case 3: Turnabout Bigtop.


**Title: **The Best Laid Plans**  
Author: **Amm (SoulSeeker)**  
Fandom:** _Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney:_ Put on the shoes of a rookie defense attorney—protect your clients from the guilty verdict in court, all while taking down prosecutors armed with whips, cravats, and coffee mugs. Not necessarily in that order!**  
Wordcount: **3,004**  
Taunt:** My fandom will see your fandom in court!**  
Notes: **My first fandom for 100fandomhell!

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The small German cafe sitting on the street corner never seemed inviting to Ema Skye. She walked past it every day, since coming to study abroad, but never even gave it a second glance. She didn't bother to learn its name, nor did she notice how many people populated its tiny space in the mornings. It was apparently quite popular, and she could guess why, smelling the coffee aroma coming from inside. It was accompanied by the sweet chime of the bell that rung, every time someone entered or left the little shop.

She stood stiff and silent, sighing occasionally as she peered in through the window with her arms crossed; still wearing her prized lab coat, though she wasn't doing any work. Frowning bitterly, watching people receive their orders, listening to bits of German conversation that she didn't completely understand — she figured she must have seemed suspicious to the others, so she decided she had better go inside, maybe order something. She needed a place to hide for a while anyway, and the crowd developing inside was perfect for it.

Ema wasn't particularly a fan of coffee, but she at least didn't mind the smell. She pushed the door open, listening to the bell chime for the fifth time, and grabbed the nearest available table — which she suspected was the last one. Casually she picked up the menu, pretending to deliberate on her order as she hid her face from the waitresses that passed her by. They seemed busy, so at least for now, she had a safe place to think and just sit.

What was she going to do now? She still had a few more weeks left in Germany. Maybe she failed the test, maybe she couldn't get the job of her dreams... but she had to do _something_ worthwhile before she had to leave and face her sister. What would she tell her? "Hi, Lana! Congratulations on getting out of jail — by the way, I failed the Forensics proficiency test, which was the whole reason I came here and basically wasted all that money. See you soon!"

A different job? An internship? Fellowship? Anything. Anything at all, she could do it. But how would anyone believe her now? She didn't pass the test. Other people did. Other people who had better lab coats, looked prettier, and on top of it all, spoke German. What was she thinking, studying abroad? Sure, it had been fun, but was she really cut out for this kind of thing?

Her head was getting heavier, she could feel it. Her eyes shut, and her face fell flat onto the table. Her lack of sleep last night seemed to be catching up to her. She couldn't even handle an all nighter without feeling tired. How was she going to handle solving a case? Criminals didn't exactly go easy on forensic scientists just because they needed a bit of sleep. "Oh, she looks tired today. Maybe I'll make it just a little easier for her to track me down."

She banged her head a couple of times, lightly, in an attempt to quiet the voices in her head. They just wouldn't shut up — and that's when she heard it.

"Well? How did the trial go? Don't leave me in suspense. ...One more day, huh? And the defense...?"

_English? _Ema perked up quickly, looking around. She definitely heard English amongst all the German chatter. It was a male voice, and it sounded distinctly familiar. If it was who she thought it was, however, she had all the more reason to hide.

"All right. Keep me updated, and I'll give you a call later tonight. I might just need you to do something for me."

No, no, no! Why him, why was _he_ here? What was he _doing_ here? In Germany? Shouldn't he have been back in Los Angeles? Did that case really compel him to come this far away? More importantly, did he have to be here _today_ of all days? This couldn't be happening. No, absolutely not. Ema needed to get out of there immediately. Before —

"Miss Skye? Is...is that you behind that menu?"

She could still see the cell phone clutched in his hand, probably from the conversation he was having just moments before. His other hand held a folder, though she couldn't quite read its label from where she was. There was a smirk on his face that was very recognizable, and even beyond that, he wore his typical magenta suit, along with his white cravat which she would've probably spotted a mile away, had she been in her right mind. Miles Edgeworth continued to stare, demanding a response from her, and his eyes were paralyzing.

"O- oh, Mr. Edgeworth," Ema chuckled lightly. "Wow... Miss Skye? Don't tell me you're mistaking me for my sister now."

He placed his phone and the folder on the table, and Ema lowered her menu shield in defeat when she saw him sit down. She wasn't going anywhere now, and Mr. Edgeworth seemed comfortable as well. She was trapped.

"Simply being polite, Ema," he replied coldly, his smirk unwavering. "You ought to try it sometime. Inviting me to sit, for instance?"

"Huh?" She looked confused for a moment, but her eyes quickly widened in shock, and she covered her face briefly to hide her shame. "Oh, right! Er, sorry, I wasn't...I didn't realize...of course you can sit, i-if you want..."

Ema blushed furiously, looking down at the table now. He had already taken his seat, so she had no idea why she said what she did. She found herself unable to look at him in the eye at that point, and focused instead on something else. _Anything_ else. His phone was the first thing that came into her view. Her hands gripped the sides of her seat tightly as she stared at it, and she could feel her composure melting away. His silence wasn't helping.

"So, um...h-how did you...I mean...you recognized me... so quickly..."

Edgeworth eyed her suspiciously, watching as Ema just barely managed to lift her head and make eye contact. He knew, of course he knew, that something was wrong. He wasn't stupid. His presence didn't merit this much anxiety, this much nervousness...just how hard was it to act casual anyway! Ema scolded herself mentally, as she awaited a response to her incoherence.

"Pink sunglasses; a white lab coat, with three pins on it... arranged like a water molecule, no less." Edgeworth stated his observations aloud, as he looked at her curiously. "It hasn't been _that_ long, Ema. And I'm not blind."

"Right... right..." She shook her head, hitting it gently. "O-of course."

There was a brief silence in which neither said anything. Ema began to feel a little more comfortable, and finally shifted her gaze from the phone to its owner, now sitting across from her. The red was finally beginning to fade from her cheeks when Edgeworth spoke again.

"Well? Are you going to make me ask, or are you going to tell me what you're doing, all the way here in Germany?"

She was hesitant in answering. The whole point of disappearing into this crowd, after all, was that there was no one she knew here. But finding Mr. Edgeworth here was totally defeating the purpose. Not to mention, he would be able to tell, most likely, if she lied, so that wasn't an option either. She frowned. Perhaps if she was vague enough, she could leave the forensics test out of the story completely.

"After... after Lana's case... so much happened, and I... I kind of wanted to get away for a while," she murmured, finally. "I came abroad, hoping to study forensics here and learn how to help people, like Lana. I still send her letters and postcards, of course! We... we keep in touch, and I promised her I would be back to see her as soon as she got released..."

Ema's eyes began to avert again. As the words came out, she began to feel guilty. What kind of person goes abroad to study while her sister is in jail? Wasn't that a terrible thing to do? Maybe it was a waste of time coming after all. She should have been in Los Angeles, taking care of Lana. She should have been in Los Angeles...and not here, failing to achieve her dreams.

"I'm sure she'll be happy to see you when that happens," Edgeworth replied, interrupting her thoughts.

His words were reassuring, and Ema found it in her to smile genuinely for the first time since she had gotten those tests results — if only for a brief moment.

"T-thank you, Mr. Edgeworth. I hope so. I can't wait to see her free again."

"So, was Germany not quite what you expected, then?" he asked suddenly.

A surprised look overcame her face. Ema never saw Mr. Edgeworth as someone who changed conversation topics so readily; why he would suddenly throw such a question at her now was a mystery to her.

"Huh? W-what do you mean? I...I don't mind it here. Germany is —"

"Well, there must be _some_ reason you look so..." Edgeworth paused for a moment, trying to find the right words. "Lost, and confused."

She frowned again. The ease with which he was figuring her out disturbed her, though she couldn't really say she was surprised. She made it easy, with her apparent inability to hide emotions. But she had to admit: even though she was upset about... well, _everything_, a part of her felt relieved that there was one familiar face in this foreign country that she could talk to. It was probably a good thing that they ran into each other, and she couldn't deny that anymore.

"Germany is great..." she finished. "But to be honest, things...haven't exactly been going as planned lately."

"...I see."

Edgeworth looked like he understood. She was expecting him to demand more; what plans, and why didn't they work? What had gone wrong, would she be able to fix it? But just as he had figured everything else out, he could apparently tell that she was not ready to talk about it. He took her statement for what it was, and decided instead to finally get the attention of a waitress. He still hadn't done what he had come here to do, after all, which was to get his morning tea.

He even managed to order a second drink for Ema, and she didn't even notice. Likewise, she didn't notice when the drinks were delivered.

The silence had given her a chance to reflect, and she was finally beginning to realize that perhaps the test wasn't everything. She had gained valuable experience, studying here, and she knew that one day she would be able to do good with what she had learned — whether she was in a lab or not. Her sister would be proud of her. She had enough money to last until the end of her trip, and she even found someone she knew. Most girls her age could kill to be in her shoes, and she needed to make the most of it.

"Your tea will get cold, if you don't drink it." A voice interrupted her thoughts. Edgeworth's voice.

"W-what?"

"It should make you feel a bit better."

She snapped back into reality and finally looked at the table, which had a small cup on it. It was like a coffee cup that you got at any standard cafe. There was still steam coming out the mouth piece, where one drank from it, so Ema handled it with care. She looked up, confused, to see Mr. Edgeworth, standing up and gathering his things.

"But... I didn't order..."

"_I_ did," Edgeworth told her. "For you. But unfortunately, I've got work to do, so I'll need to be going now. I... probably shouldn't have stayed as long as I did. I apologize."

"Oh, no no! You — you don't have to apologize, not at all. Thank you so much. For everything. And the drink...er, I can —"

Ema's hands quickly reached into her purse, and she was moments away from pulling out her wallet to reimburse him. He grabbed her hand however, and she froze up immediately. Her cheeks heated up again, turning red as her face tilted up to meet his.

"Don't worry about it. Okay?" He let go, once he was sure that she wouldn't attempt to reach into her purse again. "I'll see you around."

Mr. Edgeworth was actually smiling, she realized. She had never seen him that way before...had she? She felt paralyzed, watching him turn away; she hadn't even said goodbye. Which must have seemed so very rude. Just when she was about to go after him however, he stopped himself and turned back around.

"I almost forgot," he said, rather decisively. He placed in front of Ema the folder, which she had forgotten ever existed. She had wondered about it for all of five seconds earlier, before it slipped her mind. Now that it was back, so was the curiosity that had come with it.

"Er...what is it, Mr. Edgeworth?"

"A case. The one I'm looking into currently," he replied matter-of-factly. "The real reason I'm here is to study German law, you know. But in my opinion, the more intriguing cases are actually a bit closer to home. You wouldn't happen to be...interested?"

Ema opened the folder, which she could now see was labeled _The Berry Big Circus_.

In it was all sorts of information about a famous ringmaster's death: Russel Berry. The newspaper article that had been printed about it, his autopsy report, various profiles of employees that worked at the circus...most of it, as far as she could tell, had been faxed or copied. The newspaper — and everything else, really — was in English, which meant the case wasn't based here. It was based back home, in America, and Edgeworth probably wasn't leading the investigation.

"It says here that Mr. Wright is leading the defense," she noted. "The defendant is one Max Galactica, famous flying magician accused of murder. And the prodigy Franziska von Karma is leading the prosecution."

"That's right."

"But this...this is all taking place back in America. Why would you be looking into this here?"

Edgeworth's famous smirk appeared once again. He should have known a curious personality like Ema Skye would ask questions.

"Personal reasons. And I _could_ use a bit of your help with it... and other cases as well. If you're too busy though, of course I'll understand."

Ema stared at him in awe; she blinked a couple of times, waiting for the words to process so that her brain would allow her to reply.

"Oh, no. No, not at all!" she stammered. "Of course I'll help, if you think I can!"

She shook her head vigorously. This was an opportunity of a lifetime that just quite literally presented itself in front of her at the best time possible, and there was no way she would pass it up. It was perfect — a job, or close enough to it, working under Mr. Edgeworth, whom she had idolized for years. Something to do for her remaining weeks in Germany, not to mention something to make her trip completely worthwhile. And memorable — _much_ more memorable than passing any test.

"Glad to hear it," Edgeworth finally said. He could see how happy it made her, which was admittedly heartwarming. He pulled out a pen from his pocket, and began to scribble on an abandoned napkin that had been left at their table. "I'll need you in my office tomorrow at nine AM sharp. That's the address — it's about a ten-minute walk from here."

Ema grabbed the napkin eagerly to make sure she could read Mr. Edgeworth's "professional" handwriting.

"Go ahead and read over that file tonight, and we'll talk about it. Don't be late."

She looked up to see the back of his head. He had already turned around, and completely ready to go about his day as if nothing happened. As if he _hadn't_ just completely cheered her up. As if he hadn't single-handedly taken care of everything that was worrying her.

"I won't be! Oh, and — Mr. Edgeworth, wait!"

"What is it?"

Ema stood up hastily, as she attempted to unclip one of the pins from her lab coat. It had actually required a lot of effort; her hands were shaking, which made it considerably more difficult. Eventually though, she got it. And once she had it in her hands, she presented it to him with an eagerness he had never before seen.

"I — I want you to have it." She smiled, watching as he took it in his hands. "It's...it's one of my hydrogen atoms. One of the pins I keep on my lab coat. You mentioned them earlier — no one's ever noticed the water molecule shape before. I told myself that once someone did, I would give them one of my hydrogens as a prize...so, please. Keep it."

Edgeworth stared at the little blue pin. He didn't look terribly impressed, but he at least chuckled, as he put the pin in his pocket. He never was one to turn down a present, no matter how small it was.

"Thank you, Detective Skye. Coming from you, this probably means a lot."

Ema laughed, realizing how childish she must have seemed, but she didn't mind it at all. Being childish wasn't against the law. She needed to thank him, and at that moment, this was the only way she knew how.

She had completely lied about the pins, besides. She was never planning to give them away to anybody — not even him, until about five seconds ago. She was planning to keep them; she liked her water molecule pins. But as she was quickly finding out, the best-laid plans of attorneys and scientists often went awry.

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**A/N: **_Wow, it's about time I actually wrote a fanfic for this game series. I've only been obsessed with it for...oh, I don't know, forever? Okay, not forever. But anyway, it's a wonderful game series, and I'm glad I could finally write something for it! _

_Also, Ema/Edgeworth is a lot more adorable than I thought..._

_Eat your heart out, Klavier!_


End file.
